Igster's Inklings

We’re officially NJ residents again. I’m not going to say it was easy. Well easy to leave PA. Didn’t really have to think about that at all. Also we did all the packing and loading. Thanks to my dad and brother, we got the truck unloaded here. My dad was a really big help in that regard. It will probably take 30 years err a year to get everything put away somewhere. We went from 3/4 of a duplex to approximately 1/2 of a duplex. But it’s worth it. We went from a mediocre school in pa to one in the top 30 here.

Now, I need to find a job. It’s not easy given several factors. We have one car and the kids go to different schools. The furthest from here is about a mile one way, the other is slightly closer. It’s really too far for me to walk with my kids. Plus, my wife’s job is about 20 minutes up the parkway. There is public transportation, but due to the layout, she’d have to go to Newark switch trains and go to her job. It’s also a 2 hour train ride to go 20 minutes. Makes no sense. So, drop off the kiddos and take her to work. They get out at 2:50 she gets off work at 6.

So, I need a job where I can start at 9:45ish and get off no later than like 2:30.Or find something that starts at like 8:00 pm and never sleep. I’m thinking there aren’t a lot of jobs like that out there. Even if we had 2 cars, I’d still need to be able to pick the kids up from school. I don’t know of any after school programs around here that would pick them up from school.

Aside from that, this town may yet turn out to be my favorite place to live in NJ. It’s got so much to do, unlike hell err Hazleton was. No driving 20 miles for a book store or decent restaurant. We’re within a few miles of almost any store I could think of needing. We’re also within 10 miles of my sister and mom. No more 5 hour trips to come here, see the family and drive back to PA in the same day (TY for doing that baby).

So, we’re settling in and I’ve sort of got my pc hooked up for now. Just need a desk and place to put it(out of the way).

I’ts been a few weeks since my last entry and I missed it.I’ve also missed my twitter buddies.

We are in the process of packing up to move for a new job. I’m looking at boxes we never unpacked since the last time we moved about 2.5 years ago.

Why do we still have this? What is this? These questions fly fast and furious around here. To be fair, we have condensed quite a bit. However, that still leaves a metric crap ton of stuff to move to the new place (which is smaller than here). We are moving into 1/2 of a duplex, but here, we have 3/4 of the duplex.(See 10 pounds of crap in a 5 pound bag).

What is it that makes us hold onto things? Things we haven’t used or even looked at in years. Yet faithfully almost, we move these things from house to house time after time. I don’t have an explanation for it, we just do.

So I’m weighing do I need it vs do I really want to move it again. So far the garbage pile is winning out in many cases. Now if I didn’t have to move 568788776 books, I’d be happier.

I’d be remiss if I didn’t use the George Carlin line “their stuff is shit and your shit is stuff” See the video

Luke 11:29 “And I say unto you, Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you.”

How appropriate. Once again I left it in G-d’s hands and once again he delivered ten fold. When my wife needed a job, she found one. When we needed a place, we found one.

Finally! I’d never really heard of this town. Sure, I’d seen it in the parkway exit sign. That was the extent of any knowledge I had about it. Saturday we went and looked. At first it was small. But, weighing that against proximity to family, my wife’s job and the outstanding school  it quickly won out. The town is awesome, the neighborhood is about a 1/4 mile from “downtown” but you’d never know it.

Let me back up. We’ve been looking for a few weeks, not a long time in one respect. However, when the clock is ticking and we need a place to move into, it seems a lifetime. We looked at a few, of course the search was hampered by the almost 3 hour drive one way. Add to that, only being able to look on weekends or days off from school and it becomes harder. The one agent we dealt with was a nice enough guy… I won’t say anything more about that. He showed us two sort of adequate houses, but nothing spectacular. He knew about our drive time and assured us he had 4 or 5 to show us. Upon arrival he informed us, he was unable to get a hold of the owners to let us in. He had 3 mls listings. @ wouldn’t work for various reasons and the 3rd wasn’t available until march 1st. Too long a wait when eviction is staring you down. Our landlord is the most awesome you’d ever meet. But even he couldn’t let us live here for long with 0 income.

So, my dad works two doors down from a realtor. On a whim, he went and talked to them, and had us call their office.

Turns out they had a place, that was in our budget and we could come look at it. So we made another trip to NJ and looked and loved it. We gave them a deposit and will sign the lease this week.

The condo we had wanted to see… Well that was another case of realtor self importance. Apparently, when they say I will get an answer to your questions and call back, it doesn’t mean they will call you back anytime soon. As your customer, I should not have to chase you for the rental. If you want to make money, do your job. I think we are better off here and this is where G-d wants us to be.

Almost every move has worked out that way. The move to TX wasn’t on my list of things to do, but we went for a job. That’s where I was diagnosed and cured of cancer. The right doctors were right there where I needed them to be. While I would possibly have gotten great care elsewhere, I knew this is where I was meant to be. The move to PA wasn’t perfect. Once again, it served it’s intended purpose. We became friends with the former pastor and his wife. Just when she needed friends, we showed up and moved in next door. Mission accomplished. They have since retied and moved on. So, our time here is done. Now I believe that G-d wants us in this new place. In His time, I’m positive He will let us know the reason for this place and time.

Having faith isn’t supposed to be easy. Neither is giving up and letting G-d do things. I’m not saying to not be active or even pro active. Just that there are times when you let G-d do what He needs to. Sometimes you are happy with the results and others not so much. AT those times you need to step back and reassess the situation and see what it’s about. Maybe it will be better than you expected.

One last thing, Ive needed to find my birth certificate for awhile now. Now more than ever this week. Guess what? After it missing for over two years, I found it tonight in a place I would have never thought to look.  :-)   G-d is GOOD!

So, G-d is good! Very good to us. You non-believers are free to leave now. Although, if you’re an atheist what are you doing reading a post about faith?

Anyway, in my last post I wrote about how I needed to let go and let G-d. I did and He did. We needed a job for Michelle. With in 4 days she had interviewed and accepted a new potentially better position. She will also be getting her Real Estate license. So, there is potential there as well. As I’ve said before, He always answers, sometimes the answer is no.

Now, we are moving back to NJ. Finding a decent place, in a safe neighborhood we can afford is the trick. We wasted spent a few hours yesterday  looking at places. Neither of which were acceptable.The first was 3rd floor. But the laundry area was down 4 flights of stairs in a shared area. Umm you want to use my washer and dryer? Hell no.  The other was in a nice area, but was a small 1/2 duplex. 2 beds 1 bath and a “3rd bedroom” in a finished attic. But it had no closet and you had to walk through the main bedroom to get to it. So that’s a no-no as well.

I know I need to let Him do this again. It’s never easy giving control to another. But sometimes, you just have to. We have a line on a place. It’s a condo and not a house. That has advantages though. Plus it’s close to where I grew up. I like the area and it’s very close to family. Pus a ton of shopping, mass transit and several major highways.

So, fingers crossed.

Thanks for reading along.

So, as my sister put it, we’ve come or is it (gone) full circle? Way back in 2000, we moved to Bloomfield NJ when my wife got a better job in NY. Bloomfield was a place that was close enough.

After there we moved to TX. We lived there for about 6 years. Then here to PA. Now, it seems that as my sister also put it, losing her job was a blessing in disguise for us.Monday, she got a call at 10 til 3 saying, essentially her job was done. Well screw you, very much. So, all the 60 hour weeks, working til 11 or later at night, didn’t mean shit to them. I’m sure all the people in the local office kissed enough butt and got to stay.

As they say, life goes on. I hinted at it a little bit on twitter Thursday night. Friday we took a day trip to NJ for her job interview. She was offered a position and accepted it. Now we need to start looking for a place to live. The job is in Bloomfield NJ. I don’t know if that’s where we’ll end up, or someplace close. When we lived there, we loved it. It was close to so many things, yet was a quiet place where we felt safe raising two very young kids.

I’m looking forward to going back. Granted where we are isn’t super far, but 2.5 hours  one way is a pain in the ass.My wife drives and never says anything about it. But, I know it’s not easy for her. She knows it’s important for me to see my family and she likes it as well. So, she does it. It’s not like we can just hop in the car and go. It requires a certain amount of planning. Not so much once we’re back in NJ.

I will need to find employment once we’re back there. Most likely something in retail. Then I plan on finally getting my real estate license. I’m thinking of Commercial Real Estate, but who knows?

Thank you again to all of you that sent positive thoughts and words of encouragement.

I’m sure by now, most of you heard about the tragedy in Haiti today. Our hearts and prayers go out to them. A friend of mine from Twitter, lives here in PA. He’s a poker guy. He’s also a very cool and nice guy. He’s using his Poker game to make a difference. Click the link to see what I’m talking about. While you’re there, take a minute to check out the rest of his site. You’ll be glad you did.

See this, to see what I mean, or here for great poker info.

I have loved this song since the first time I heard it. It’s powerful and beautiful.

Today,  my wife was laid off. I’m sure many people would be mad(as we are) and they would be pissed at G-d. (we are not). would it be easy to be mad at G-d, or whatever Deity, Supreme Being? Of course it would, and it’s a natural thing to feel that way. I admit, I have never been a perfect Christian. Although, I came close once  :-) . I am back-slidden, and there are many reasons(sorry excuses). Do I get angry with Him? Of course I do. I’m sure (to me) He understands and forgives that. He asks that we come to Him, not just in need, but also in joy and in celebration. He always answers prayers, what I believe people have trouble with is, sometimes the answer is no. I guess no one likes hearing no. I run to Him a lot. We ran to Him again today. It’s never easy, especially when you feel like you should be in control, to say “here you go, you handle this.

This is not a debate about religion, or Christianity. These are my thoughts and feelings on the subject. You are of course, free to disagree.

So, I’m doing my best to turn it over into His hands. As I said, it isn’t easy to do. But, try I shall. In my heart and soul I know He will help in His way and in his time. I wish it would come sooner than later. Also, if you know of a position for an experienced REO Asset Manager, by all means feel free to send that info along. Tomorrow I will put up a webpage with her Resume on it and I will use Twitter to pimp it out.

It’s not easy to trust, then again, I’m not sure faith should be a cakewalk. what would be the point. This is a favorite Bible Verse of ours.

^{Jeremiah 29:11} For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.

A friend of my daughters was here a few weeks ago. I was telling her mom that I made dolls, etc. She made me feel really good with her praise of some of my work. She really liked the mermaid doll I’d made. I’ll try and find a picture.

So I decided to make a doll for her. The pattern is called “Zaftig Fairy” I’ve never made the fairy. I’ve gone with more of an Angel.

The first picture is playing around with costuming. Because of the dolls shape it’s difficult to make any kind of clothing. So, I’m trying something new. It’s a draping process. You basically put the material on the the doll, then cut, sew etc in place. It’s not something I’ve tried before, but this is how we learn right. The next pic is another stage. The third should be the wings, these were hand sewn and hand quilted. I need to finish the clothing, attach the wings and do the face. Im really terrible at faces. So, we’ll see

It’s been quite the decade. Although, I’m not sure I agree with the decade thing. To me it’s a 10 year period. So, that would be 2000-2010. But, others are saying 1999-2009. I also don’t agree the millennium started in 2000 but rather, 2001. Anyway, it’s not the crux of my post.

Since 1999(since that’s the theme) we’ve had a son (second child).Moved 4 times. From Miamisburg, Oh to Bloomfield, NJ from there to Irving,Tx Irving to Grapevine almost a direct line move from one side of the airport to the other. To a much better apartment and neighborhood.

Grapevine was a great place, great schools, lots to do etc. I was also diagnosed with and beat testicular cancer. Some day that will be a post in itself. I couldn’t have asked for a better medical team. Again, Texas was a good place. God made sure I had the exact people to detect and help get rid of the cancer.

I sometimes regret moving from there. But now it’s a 2 hoour ride to see my family versus 2 days in the car.

My sister had her first kid, my nephew will be three soon. Time really does fly. I love him to death. ON the other hand, I screwed up when it comes to my niece. Even though I wasn’t around;ie out of state for most of her life, I should have done more to be closer to her. I plan on doing that this coming year. I love her and need to make sure she knows it. I also want to be closer to all my siblings and in laws.

I’m also starting a new chapter with the new year. My wife and I will be starting a business. I already own the domain name and have started building the website. We’ll be filling out the various and sundry forms for forming an LLC. Gotta be all legal, right?

I also discovered twitter this year and through it, made a ton of friends. Thank you all for making it a great year, despite all the bullshit.

And a speedy full recovery to Rush Limbaugh.